Wallabies Won’t Make Same Mistakes

There is an old saying that a week is a long time in politics. How strange that this very phrase can be applied to the Wallabies.

Two weeks ago the outlook for Australian rugby was bright, with the Reds winning the Super 15 and the Waratahs also performing strongly. Many believed that this would transform into a winning culture at the national level.

However, in the one match every Wallabies fan would have been willing to bet the house on this season, the “Wobblies” fell back into their old habits and failed to kick-start their campaign with a solid win.

In their 32-23 loss to Samoa, the Wallabies were beaten in just about every aspect of the game, particularly the breakdown.

In a telling statistic, the Wallabies did not manage to pilfer the Samoan ball once, showing that the Samoans were far better than anyone expected at securing their ball.

It also highlights the lack of impact made by Australia’s flankers, Matt Hodgson and captain Rocky Elsom.

This weekend however against the South African Springboks, Australia welcome back premier flanker, David Pocock.

Pocock is the one of very few men in the world to have outgunned All Blacks flanker Richie McCaw, notably at the Hong Kong Test in October last year.

His presence will give the Wallabies that much-needed edge at the breakdown and allow them to upset the Springbok ball, something they failed to do against Samoa.

Pocock’s opposite number will be Dannie Rossouw from the Bulls, a hard-hitting flanker, but now overly known for his pilfering ability. Had he been paired with Bulls team mate Pierre Spies, this would be a far more formidable Springbok back-row to take on Pocock.

Also, with the impressive Red, Scott Higginbotham coming off the bench, this makes for a far more formidable Wallabies back-row to monster the Springboks at the ruck.

As it is, the Springboks have brought a “B” side to Australia due to injuries and resting of key stars before the World Cup. The fact that the Wallabies played the Samoans with a “B” side last weekend should be an ominous warning to the South Africans to take every test seriously.

In not taking Samoa seriously, the Wallabies left players such as Will Genia, Quade Cooper, Kurtley Beale and many others out of the starting line-up or left out completely.

This week there will be no such mistakes. Despite having many certain starters such as Benn Robinson, Tatafu Polata-Nau and Berrick Barnes unavailable due to injury, this is the strongest possible squad, with the exception of Matt Giteau.

If the South African game plan to pin Australia in their own half via punts succeeds, which is likely due to the wet conditions, the unpredictable Quade Cooper will not have as many attacking opportunities.

This will mean players like Kurtley Beale and James O’Connor will play first receiver a lot more to liven up the attack, and also expect to see a lot more pick-and-drive from the likes of Pocock and McCalman.

For either side to win this match, some key areas must be addressed.

Discipline

The wet conditions will not favour running rugby and so expect to see a lot of field positional play. With Morne Steyn ability to kick goals from over 50m, the Wallabies must not give away silly penalties.

Breakdown

The Springboks would have watched the Samoans monster Australia at the breakdown with glee and will also look to upset Will Genia’s ball at the back.

If the Wallaby forwards do not play with far more aggression than they did last weekend at this breakdown, do not be surprised if we are subjected to another embarrassing defeat. However, with the return of Pocock, the Wallabies will play with far more composure.

Counter-Attack

The backline is one area where Australia has it over their opponents. They possess four X-factor players in Genia, Cooper, Beale and O’Connor, whilst Digby Ioane is no slouch either.

If the Wallaby forwards, particularly Pocock, can pilfer the South African ball at the breakdown, this will be the perfect opportunity for the X-factors to launch the counter. Despite the conditions, tries will be scored, and with this line-up, the Wallabies should score more.

Prediction

Wallabies by 13. The Wallabies have a history of responding well to scathing criticism and last year did not lose two tests on the trot at home. The Springboks have a poor record in Sydney and are lacking the players with the grunt to disrupt the Wallaby ball. There will be a lot of scrums and penalty goals, but the Wallabies team knows they can ill-afford to lose another test like that in a World Cup year. They will not make the same mistakes as last week.